Dissidia Academy
by ForceoftheSpear
Summary: AU. The characters of Dissidia attend high school together, unaware of how their strange powers will shape their destinies.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

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Disclaimer: Final Fantasy and all the characters presented in this story belong to Square-Enix and not to me.

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_The world of Gaia is ruled by four elements:fire, wind, water and earth. In ancient times, these four elements were kept in the form of four crystals. The crystals granted great power to the chosen warriors who lived in the world, warriors of both light and darkness. These warriors, whose purpose was to protect the balance of the world, began to desire the crystals' powers for themselves. Warriors of Light, believing themselves to be purer than all others, sought the crystals powers to elevate themselves as the supreme ruler of the world. The Warriors of Chaos, desiring power and an end to all things, sought the crystals to achieve their own ambitions. _

_ Many wars were fought over the crystals. This fighting threatened the very balance of the world, causing the destruction of the land and the death of the living. Peace would reign for a short time only to be thrown aside again when another warrior blessed with gifts in weaponry or magic would use his powers to seek his own ambitions. Finally, after many years of strife, a Warrior of Light and a Warrior of Chaos set aside their differences and fought together. They gathered all four crystals together and, with their combined power, they shattered them. The shards were buried within the world of Gaia and the cycle ended. Magic faded from the world and the warriors returned to living a normal life. _

_ The ages came and went in relative peace. The people of Gaia gradually forgot about the power of the four crystals, the magic that they brought into the world and the warriors whom fought for their powers. These details passed into legend as the world changed. However, though much was forgotten, none of it was truly lost..._

_ In these modern days, strange things have begun to occur. People are being born with magical abilities. Weapons long hailed as legends began to reappear and their craft is being restored. Strange creatures are being sighted all over the world. The normal, every day person is once again being caught up in a conflict beyond their control. The cycle is returning to Gaia..._

___The cause of this phenomena is unknown to many who now inhabit this world. They look in suspicion on those with strange powers, even as they beg these same people to save them. Though many other solutions have been tried, it becomes clear now there is but one choice. We must gather them all in one place. We must bring them here..._

* * *

The sun was shining brightly down on a cool September morning. The light reflected off of the pristine school campus, highlighting all of its new buildings and upgrades. This expansion had been necessary, as the once small academy that barely held a mere hundred students was now expecting to house several hundreds. The change had been necessary, as many of the schools sponsors had put it. After all, this was no ordinary school. How could it be, when the student body was made up of those with amazing magical powers and fighting abilities?

The school was called the Dissidia Academy and it was run by principal Alexander Light. Said principal had arrived at the school just after dawn to be sure everything was ready for the big day. It was not just the first day of a new school year, but also the day when hundreds of new students would be joining them on campus. A new stage had been built in front of the school for the occasion, while rows upon rows of chairs were set up behind it. Colorful streamers, balloons and banners were strewn all throughout the campus. Billboards of information and maps were spread throughout the buildings to help all their new students get acquainted. Satisfied that everything was in its proper place, Alexander Light returned to his office to freshen up before the droves of people arrived.

Straightening his tie in front of a long mirror by the window, Principal Light quickly glanced out the window. He could see that some of the students were already arriving and being directed to their seats. Appreciating their promptness, Principal Light turned back to the mirror to inspect his appearance one last time. His long silver gray hair fell neatly to his shoulders, highlighting his pale skin and clear blue eyes. His tall body, strong, but not overly muscular, was dressed in a blue business suit that matched his eyes. His dress shirt was a light yellow, covered by a light blue tie. His shoes were a pristine white and he took pains to make sure they stayed that way.

When he felt like he was ready, he turned away from the mirror and walked towards a small crystal that he kept on his desk. His fingers pressed against the side of it and it glowed for him. The light warmed his heart and the principal felt like his purpose was being affirmed. Comforted, Principal Light exited his office and headed towards the stage.

He strode quickly through the hallways and out the front doors. Some of his staff were waiting for him outside, informing him that most of the students had arrived and were seated. They would be able to start on time, just as they'd hoped. Principal Light thanked them for letting him know and told them to go take a seat on the stage. They hurried off and the principal walked slowly behind them. The principal could hear the chatter of many voices as the stage came into view. They all melded together to form a kind of cacophony of excitement, nervousness, laughter and happiness.

As he stepped up on the stage, the cacophony began to die away. Principal Light stood before the podium and adjusted the microphone as other staff members motioned for silence from the crowd. The voices finally died away and Principal Light's blue eyes scanned the crowd, taking in all their faces for the first time. He saw a tall, lean boy in the front row with wavy silver gray hair that looked much like his own. His eyes were a deep blue and he was wearing a dark navy dress shirt over black pants. A few rows behind him, he saw a much bigger young man who could have been the other boy's brother. He had the same silver gray hair, though it was much longer and the eyes matched. However, this other boy was much larger, both in height and weight, and the clothes he wore were completely black. Turning away from the two boys, he pulled a stack of notes from his coat pocket and laid them on the podium in front of him as he began to speak.

"Good morning to you all!" His voice was clear and bright as it rang out across the crowd. "Let me be the first to welcome you to our fine school. Words cannot express how happy my staff and I are to have you here with us today."

He paused as spontaneous applause and cheers began to ripple throughout the crowd. His eyes scanned the new students again and he saw a cheerful boy with brown hair and blue eyes wearing a white tank top with yellow frills at the top. A row behind him was a girl with green hair tied back into a ponytail, her face set into an impassive mask. A few seats from her sat a tall slender boy with an excessive amount of make-up on his face. His blond hair was tied back into a ponytail with a couple feathers in it and he was fidgeting in his seat with an incredibly impatient look on his face.

"As you are all aware, this is no ordinary school," Principal Light continued when the cheers had died away. "Our school not only teaches the typical school curriculum of math and science, but is also catered to teach students how to properly use magic and wield weaponry. The invitations we sent out to new students are only given to those who have these unique abilities. Take a moment to look around you. For the first time in your lives, you are surrounded by those who share powers that are akin to your own."

The new students did as he asked and they began examining one another, some with friendly smiles, others with shyness and still others with boredom and disdain. Towards the back of the crowd, his keen eyes spotted a moody looking boy with brown hair and a scar across his face. He seemed to take no interest in the doings of the others around him. A few seats away from him was his polar opposite, a boy with thick blond hair pulled back into a ponytail. He was excitedly chattering away with everyone, particularly the girls seated in front of him. Beside him, was a another taller boy—at least he thought it was a boy—with long silver purple hair, light purple lipstick and a feather sticking out of his hair. He had a haughty expression on his face and was taking time to examine his painted nails.

"I am aware that people of our persuasion are not always welcome in the world we live in." Principal Light said as the crowd turned its attention back to him. "Rest assured that here you will face no such prejudices here. Our faculty is made up of magic users and skilled warriors of all classes. Our goal at this school is to help all of you develop the powers that have been bestowed upon you."

Principal Light paused here for effect and took one last look into the crowd. He spotted a boy with messy blond hair leaning back in his chair. He seemed very laid back and he dressed like he was about to head to the beach. A few chairs behind him sat a tall, muscular wearing a similar style of clothing. His brown hair was sticking up and he had a red bandana tied around his head. He was also looking pretty laid back, but there was a smug confidence in this young man's expression that the other boy lacked. His eyes scanned the entire crowd one last time before he spoke his final words.

"If there is one thing that I would like to impress upon you, it's that you've been given these powers for a reason. None of it is arbitrary. If you're willing to work hard and accept your skills, then this school is sure to help you achieve your destiny."

Applause met the end of his speech along with some very loud whistles and cheers. Principal Light waved one last time at the crowd before he exited the platform. The Dean of Students took over at this point and was instructing the new students to divide themselves by grade before they left to try on their new school uniforms. He strode away from the platform and headed back to his office, where he knew he would not find a moment of peace all day.

His expectations were met, as his staff bombarded him all day with questions and paperwork. Though the work was a bit tiring, Principal Light was inwardly feeling quite content. The turnout from their invitations had been much greater than expected and the amount of fresh bodies they now had at the academy was encouraging. The way things were going, they were going to need every one of them. Pushing the thought away, Principal Light focused on his work and then spent the rest of his time greeting some of his new students. Each new face he saw served to remind him that this was the beginning of a new era at the Dissidia Academy.

* * *

_The sun was beginning to set as all the orientations finished and the students started to meander back to their homes. Principal Light watched them go from the roof top of the school, some of them already leaving with new friends. The light from the sun lit up their faces, as if putting them all in the spotlight for a brief moment. That light reflected all their different expressions, from happiness to sadness, from laughter to anger, from love and hate. In the fading light they seemed to represent life itself._

_ "That was a good speech you gave today." _

_ Principal Light didn't turn, for he knew the man was there before he spoke. Dressed in all black, with an eternally somber expression, the other man was like his shadow. _

_ "I liked the part about achieving their destinies, although I might have left out the part about hard work and acceptance. You know that neither will matter in the long run."_

_ "I don't think that's true."_

_ "You mean you don't want to believe it's true." _

_ Principal Light closed his eyes and gripped the railing in front of him. "I won't believe it unless there actually is no alternative. I didn't bring them here just to be pawns."_

_ "It had to be this way. We need new blood. You know this."_

_ The principal looked uncomfortably at his companion before saying, "They all look so young. They're still full of hopes and dreams. They still marvel at the future. Yet, they have no idea what awaits them."_

_ "It had best stay that way."_

_ There was a long silence before Principal Light spoke again._

_ "Are you sure we're doing the right thing?" _

_ "No, but we are doing what's necessary." _

* * *

Author's Note: Well, that was the first chapter of my Dissidia AU story. I know there was a lot of set up in this chapter, but the next one should be a lot more fun. A lot of the main cast will be introduced. My plan is to stick with the characters from the original Dissidia title, but I may have a few characters drop in from other Final Fantasies if I feel like it. As the story progresses, there will also some pairings, both hetero and slash. I'm letting everyone know this now so that there won't be any unwelcome surprises later on.

All that aside, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Please leave me a review if you have time and I hope you stick around for the rest of the story.


	2. Orientation Part One

**Orientation Part One**

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Terra Branford had woken up early, as she often did, and walked out onto the balcony of her small apartment. There was a cool breeze that morning and it ruffled her white night gown as she stood by the railing. She brushed a stray piece of green hair out of her face and leaned against the railing, staring out at the nearby school building. The sun was just rising and its first light seemed to illuminate the campus. It made the grounds look like they were shining with gold.

_I suppose this is what people refer to when they say 'beautiful.' _Terra thought to herself without emotion. Taking one last look at the sight, she went back inside and shut the sliding door behind her.

Terra ate a small breakfast, then went into her bedroom to change. She pulled on a short, strapless red dress with gold trim and a floral design that ended just at the start of her legs. She pulled a pair of floral tights over her legs and stepped into a pair of red and gold boots with pointed toes. She pulled a pair of red sleeves over her arms and tied several colorful sashes around her hips, then tied a floral cape around her neck. Lastly, she brushed her wavy green hair and pulled it back into a ponytail, keeping it in place with a flower sash. She added a little make-up and considered herself ready.

Terra gazed into the mirror, seeing herself dressed as she normally was. Part of her wondered if she should have tried to look a bit different for the first day of school, but there was no urgency in her to do so. She supposed she should be excited or nervous or happy or, well, something, about her upcoming school orientation, but she felt nothing. This wasn't anything new for the green-haired girl, but she had clung to a tiny hope that perhaps today she might experience some different emotion. Instead, she felt nothing, like always.

Turning away from the mirror, Terra glanced about her small apartment, looking for something to occupy herself with. Seeing nothing of interest, she gazed towards the campus once more. She decided that since she had nothing better to do, she would go walk around on the school grounds for a while. She exited her apartment, locking the door behind her and leisurely went down the stairs. The sun shone on her pale face as she stepped out and walked towards the campus, her cape rustling in the breeze.

* * *

Zidane Tribal heard his alarm go off and smothered a groan with his pillow. He had never been a fan of mornings and always set his alarm as late as he possibly could. However, remembering why he had to get up so early that morning put him in high spirits as he leaped out of bed and landed on his feet. Still yawning a little, he pulled out a blue short-sleeved shirt with a navy collar and tugged it over his head. He put on some jeans, pushing his golden tail through a small hole in the back, and then put a brush through his thick blond hair. Once he was done brushing it, he tied it back into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. He stepped into his sturdy black boots and felt like he was ready to go.

After a quick trip to the bathroom, Zidane was completely prepared for his school's orientation. It never took him long to get dressed and while he didn't want to look slovenly, he never put that much effort into his appearance. This put him at odds with another member of his household, who could and probably had, spend hours getting ready before he dared step outside. Turning towards his brother's room, he saw that the lights were on. Shaking his head, Zidane figure his older brother had likely been up for hours getting ready.

"Come on Kuja!" Zidane called from the hallway. "We're gonna be late."

When he received no answer, Zidane sighed and went to his brother's room. The door was open, so all he had to do was walk in. He stood just in front of the doorway as he examined his brother's room. The bed was covered with neatly laid out clothing that Kuja must have tried on before he settled on his current outfit. His brother was standing in front of the giant circular mirror that stood on top of his five drawer dresser. The top of the dresser was covered with a variety of make-up, everything from foundation to eyeliner to nail polish and several different colors of lip stick. Kuja was currently applying a coat of light purple lipstick to his mouth, as purple was his favorite color, and it went well with his silvery purple hair.

Zidane shook his head at the massive amount of preparation, but he was also used to it. Kuja never went anywhere without 'looking his best,' as he often put it. Zidane tapped his fist against the frame of the door in impatience, hoping to get his brother's attention. "Are you almost ready? We need to leave."

"In a minute, Zidane." Kuja replied, sounding irritated that he had even asked the question. He walked over to his full body mirror that stood beside his dresser. "I will not rush myself. It's important to make a good impression on occasions like this. The right appearance is key to making the right impression."

Zidane often wondered who or what his older brother was constantly trying to impress, but he said nothing. He knew his brother's moods well enough to know any more arguments on the matter wouldn't get him anywhere. He watched as his brother turned in front of the mirror and checked every angle on his outfit. He was wearing a skin tight purple shirt with a white flower and vine design that spread out from his right shoulder. The shirt ended just below his belly button, showing off a small patch of skin above his black pants. Those were also skin tight around his legs, flaring a little bit at the bottom. There was a little more room given at the top of the pants, which was covered up by a stylish black and silver belt. Zidane knew his older brother hated his tail and liked to hide it beneath his clothing, hence why he always adjusted the tops of his pants to accommodate for it. No one would notice it if they weren't looking for it, so a lot of people were probably unaware of his brother's tail.

"Can you believe they won't let us wear mid-riffs?" Kuja huffed as he scrutinized his shirt. "I know this school is requiring us to wear uniforms, but on these few casual dress days the least they could do is give us the freedom to express ourselves." The slender boy then adjusted his belt to make sure his tail was completely unnoticeable. "Honestly, I feel like these rules are just in place to punish beautiful people like me."

"Uh-huh." Zidane said with a nod. He found it was just best to agree with Kuja when he talked about matters like this. "Well, we're not going to make a very good impression if we're late for orientation." He continued reasonably, hoping this would spur his brother to get out of his room so they could be on their way.

"I suppose you're right. This will have to do." Kuja said with an elaborate sigh before he turned his eyes away from the mirror. He quickly looked Zidane over from head to toe before walking right up to him and adjusting his collar. Then he moved on to smoothing out Zidane's shirt.

"Kuja!" Zidane said as he tried to knock his brother's hands away. He hated when his brother fussed over him like this.

"Well, I'm not letting you leave the house like this. Not with your shirt half tucked in and half tucked out. It looks ridiculous!" He finished completely untucking Zidane's shirt and put his hands on his hips. "There, that's better." He nodded with approval.

"Great. Thanks. Now, come on!"

Zidane grabbed his brother's wrist and gave a big tug. He ran through the hall, practically dragging his older brother as he ran for the door. Kuja protested this, but Zidane ignored him. The blond haired boy quickly opened the door and shut it behind them. The door was equipped with an automatic security lock, so the boys didn't have to bother locking it as they ran out the door and into the street. A few feet away from their house, Kuja abruptly pulled to a stop and caused Zidane to fall flat on his back.

"Enough Zidane." He commanded as he pushed some of his silvery purple hair back over his shoulder. "I will not run all the way to school. You know how I hate being hot and sweaty. Besides, the school's not very far from here. There's no need to rush ourselves so much."

Zidane jumped back to his feet and checked his watch. They were cutting it close, but Kuja was right. They would probably be on time. Still, the younger boy didn't want to take any chances.

"All right, you can walk then." Zidane said amiably as he brushed some dirt from his back. "I'll run ahead and save a seat for you. See you later!"

With that, the blond haired boy sprinted off, happy to feel the cool morning air brushing against his face. Unlike his brother, Zidane enjoyed a good run from time to time. The thought made him smile as Dissidia Academy came into view. In spite of their differences, he truly loved his older brother—even if he didn't always understand him.

* * *

Kefka Palazzo skipped his way through the campus until he found the stage where the welcoming speech was supposed to be held. As he frolicked his way through the crowds, he noticed the odd looks that everyone gave him. He couldn't tell if it was because of his clown make-up, his costume or the peculiar way he was moving about the crowd. All he knew was that he didn't care what they thought. Why should he? His white face paint, along with his swirling red patterns by his eyes and his purple lip stick made him happy and his mismatched jester costume was as much fun to make as it was to wear. It was all perfectly suited to him because having fun was really the only thing that truly mattered to him.

He came to a stop right in front of one of the ushers, who gave him a very curious look. After a moment, she directed him to a seat in the middle of the crowd of chairs. She instructed him to keep to the right side of the chairs until he reached the row where he was supposed to sit and walk down the aisle to reach his seat. Deeming this to be a dull affair, Kefka leapfrogged and bounced his way diagonally over the chairs before he dramatically flipped into his own seat. The clown turned back around to see the absolutely baffled look on the face of the usher, along with several nearby spectators. Kefka laughed loudly at their expressions and turned back around in his chair.

Unfortunately, that was the end of his fun for a while. His row and the row behind him filled up, making it impossible for him to escape. He regretted arriving so early as he realized his only reward for it would be to sit on a hard chair, waiting for some old codger to get on the stage and babble at him. Annoyed at his predicament, Kefka began to fidget in his seat.

After what seemed like eons to the impatient clown, a man with silver hair dressed in a blue business suit took the stage. He stood in front of the microphone and pulled some note cards from his jacket pocket. The Principal of Dissidia Academy paused in his actions to scan the crowd.

_Come on, come on, you can stare at all of us later. _Kefka raised a hand and moved it in a circular motion. _Just get on with it already!_

Finally, the speech began and Kefka relaxed a little. After the initial welcome, he paid little attention to what was being said. The clown felt that these welcoming speeches were all the same and that if you'd heard one, you'd heard them all. He drummed his fingers on his leg as the President continued to speak, pausing now and again as the crowd cheered at his words. Kefka groaned when they did because all they had accomplished was making the speech longer.

About midway through the speech, the President asked them to look around at their fellow students since this would be the first time they'd be surrounded by others who were like them. Kefka did as he suggested, but only out of a need to alleviate his growing boredom. His eyes scanned the crowd, trying to find anything of interest.

_Well, let's see, there's a pretty green-haired girl who looks about as interested in this whole ordeal as I am, a boy in a white tank top who looks like he belongs in the ballet, and behind me there's a pair of meat heads in beach wear. _Kefka craned his neck around to get a better view of the back rows, hoping to find something a bit more interesting. _Hm, there's a brown-haired boy in the back who looks like he has some serious issues, a horny, short, blond kid flirting with every girl he can find and—Hello, what's this?_

Kefka's eyes had landed on a slender young man with a feather sticking out of his hair. His long, flowing hair looked to be a shade of lavender from the distance. A light purple lipstick adorned his mouth and he was looking at his painted nails of a similar color.

_I like his style. _Kefka thought as brushed a finger against his dark purple lipstick. _Certainly looks like the least boring person here besides me. I'll have to make his acquaintance later..._

He turned back around as the principal began blabbing once more. His irritation returned in force as the speech seemed to go on forever.

_Powers...blah blah...hard work...blah, blah, blah, words, words, words...BORING! _Kefka thought impatiently. Closing his eyes, he was thinking he might as well take a power nap during the dull speech when clapping from all over the crowd caused him to open his eyes again. He realized the speech must have ended as the President was walking off the podium.

_Well, that was terrible, but at least it was short. _Kefka gave a small sigh of relief at that. Maybe now he'd actually be able to get up and move around. He hated sitting still in a chair for long periods of time. His relief immediately gave way to more irritation as the Dean of Students took to the podium and began instructing them about the order they would be getting their uniforms and how they would break into their perspective groups. Kefka was now fidgeting in his chair so much that he looked like he was rocking back and forth like an insane asylum patient.

_Ugh, get off the stage! Stop talking and get off the stage! _Kefka practically screamed in his head, a hand to his forehead.

Just after he had thought this, the Dean of Students bid them farewell and good luck. At the dismissal, everyone got up and stretched. Kefka hastily pushed past them all, eager to be away from his chair. Once he was out of the crowd, he was greeted by the sight of personnel with clip boards calling for different groups of students to come to them so they could be properly sorted. The other students in the crowd obeyed their orders and fell into lines like obedient little sheep. Kefka couldn't stand it.

_This is all sooooo boring! Ugh, I need something to make this better. Something explosive..._

Kefka scanned his surroundings for something, anything that could provide him with entertainment. That's when he spotted it. A big box full of fireworks had been placed to the side of the chairs. They had probably been saving it for the end of orientation. Kefka rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

_Perfect! Now, I just have to get a little closer._ He tiptoed easily past the gaggles of gabbing people and stopped when he was just a few feet away from the fireworks. He cupped his hands by his chest and used the Fire spell to form a small fireball. Gradually, he made the ball smaller and smaller, allowing the power to diminish so that the ball would shrink. When the ball was no greater than a small spark, he uncupped his hands and directed the spark towards the target. Then, he ran back a few paces and turned back to watch the show.

The box exploded in an array of color. Fireworks shot out in all directions into the crowd of new students and teachers. Some of the students were tripping over chairs to get away from the colorful missiles that had been launched everywhere. Others were lying on the ground, with their heads covered as smoke rose above them. The teachers were trying to quell any of the fireworks that came near them, casting small spells to try disintegrate them. The result was pure chaos complete with people screaming, shouting and cursing as the area was covered by smoke.

A big grin spread across his face as the fireworks finally died down. Kefka cackled to himself at the mayhem he had caused. People everywhere were pulling each other up from the ground, trying to brush themselves off or trying to get away from the massive amounts of smoke. He saw a few unlucky people who were suffering from excess smoke inhalation and still a few others who were putting out fires on their clothes. Not that he cared about any of that. It had all been done for his entertainment and he was entertained.

Besides, it wasn't like all of the people in the audience had been unhappy with his little stunt. He saw quite a few people smiling and laughing at their own disheveled appearances, telling tales of this firework or another that passed them by. Others still were looking embarrassed as their peers teased them about their overreactions. Some of the teachers were trying to figure out who the culprit was who set off the fireworks, but couldn't find anyone who had seen anything definitive. Kefka whistled to himself and walked away with his hands clasped behind his back, knowing that they would never find him. The serious mood that had filled the crowd had vanished and the teachers would be hard pressed to regain the sheep-like control they'd had over the new students.

Kefka smiled to himself, his need for excitement satiated—for now. After all, life would be so dull without periodic spurts of destructive mayhem. He knew that some of those boring people who had gotten on the short end of his little joke might disagree with him, but he didn't care about them. Kefka was happy and that was all that mattered.

* * *

"Well, no one can say it hasn't been an interesting morning." Bartz Klauser murmured to himself as he pushed some black ash off of his arms.

Bartz had started off said morning by waking up early and going on one of his morning walks. He lived in a small cottage out in the countryside and loved to go wandering around the woods every day. In spite of his chocobo Boko's pecking protests, he had done his usual walk that morning, thinking he would still have plenty of time to prepare for school orientation once he got back. Upon arriving back at his cottage, however, he found he had spent more time walking than he had anticipated. Hastily stuffing a piece of bread in his mouth and changing his clothes, he hopped onto the antsy Boko and rode off.

He lived quite far away from the school and he urged Boko to hurry if they were going to be on time. As he was riding towards the school, he passed by a short boy with thick blond hair and what looked like a golden tail sticking out of his pants. Bartz had blinked and turned back around to make sure he had actually seen that, but Boko was going too fast for him to get a proper look at it again. Stocking it up to a trick of the eyes, Bartz turned his blue eyes towards Dissidia Academy and didn't look back.

Bartz had ridden the chocobo to the school gates where some of the staff offered to take care of him after a long ride. He thanked them and went to go find a seat by the stage. The carefree boy waited patiently in his seat for the school's president to take the stage. He arrived after a short wait and the speech he gave was a good one in Bartz's mind. He applauded at the end and listened for further instruction from the Dean of Students.

When all the talking was finished, Bartz got up and waited in his row with the other students. A few were chattering, but many more seemed shy or nervous about being at their new school. They all shuffled forward obediently, not wanting to cause any problems or get in trouble. Bartz was just thinking that maybe people were taking all this a little too seriously when it happened. A nearby box of fireworks exploded and fired themselves into the crowd.

Alert, the brown-haired boy saw a red, whizzing firework coming in his direction and quickly fell to the ground. He placed his hands over his head and stayed on the ground to avoid breathing in too much smoke. He urged the others around him to stoop down or lie low until it was over. Many of them obeyed him and so he lay among a small crowd of people waiting for the fireworks to run their course as they exploded all around them.

When the chaos had died down, Bartz got to his feet and brushed himself off. He helped those around him to their feet. Many of the people around him were laughing about what had happened and their was a hum of excitement in the air.

Eventually, his line started moving again and he got out of the crowd of chairs. Once he headed towards some of the personnel as he had previously been instructed, he saw the teachers and other staff members were asking if anyone knew who had set off the fireworks. Glancing to his right, he was pretty sure the culprit was a tall boy in with clown make-up who seemed overly pleased with himself about something. Bartz thought about saying something about this, but decided against it. The little stunt hadn't really done anyone any harm. In fact, Bartz felt that a lot of the tension and nervousness that had been thick in the air among the crowd of new students had now dissipated. Thinking this was a good thing, the carefree boy kept his mouth shut on the matter and let the clown have his fun.

When things had calmed down and order was restored, Bartz was instructed to go to a nearby tree with the other junior high. He did so and shortly afterwords they were into even smaller groups who were going to be led around the school. Bartz's group was in the hands of a petite white mage, who was one of the school's healers. She explained that since they were in junior high, they would be the last to get uniforms and the last to get registered. So, to fill up time, she was going to take them on a guided tour of the campus until it was their turn to get registered.

The white mage beckoned them to follow, but Bartz fell towards the back of the group and stayed behind. He made sure they had moved far enough away before he started walking the opposite direction. Bartz had never been a fan of milling around with big crowds and decided he'd rather be by himself.

_ After all, if all we're going to do is wander I can do that easily enough on my own. I do it all the time._

With that thought in mind, Bartz began wandering the campus and eventually ended up walking towards the main building. It was a large silver building, going up at least four stories, with blue trim around the edges and windows. If you didn't know this was a school for those with powers and skills, it would just look like another high school. He was walking rather aimlessly, not really paying much attention to his surrounding when an incredulous voice spoke up behind him.

"Um, do you know where you're going?"

Bartz turned around to see the source of the voice. He was greeted by the sight of a blond-haired boy in a blue T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. Behind him, the brown-haired boy spotted a hint of gold, waving back and forth.

"Oh!" Bartz exclaimed as he pointed at the golden tail. "You're the boy from this morning. You really **do** have a tail." He rubbed the back of his head and chuckled. "I totally thought I was seeing things when we ran past you on the way to school."

"That I do." The boy's tail swished back and forth to emphasize its presence. "My name's Zidane. What's yours?"

"Bartz."

"Nice to meet you, Bartz. By the way, who's the 'we' that apparently ran past me this morning? You and—"

"Boko and I. My chocobo." Bartz explained as the other boy gave him a strange look at the name.

"That's right! I did see someone on a chocobo this morning." The shorter boy smiled at him and put his hands behind his head. "So, are you going to answer my first question?"

"Hm?"

"The one where I asked you if you knew where you were going?"

"Oh, well," Bartz shrugged, "I don't really. I was just wandering around because I felt like it."

Zidane tilted his head to the side in curiosity. "You weren't part of an orientation group?"

"Well, I was, but I kind of ditched them." Bartz explained as he rubbed the back of his head. "They were just going to be wandering around the campus and I figured I could do that just as easily on my own."

"I see." The blond-haired boy sighed.

"Why were you following me?"

"The fireworks had something to do with it. My section of the crowd ended up being held back because of all the smoke and I didn't get a chance to meet up with my orientation group. I saw you walking away from the crowd and you looked like you were the same age as me. I thought since you were by yourself you might be in the same situation I was and that they'd instructed you to go somewhere. So, I followed you and here I am." He ended cheerfully.

"I see. Sorry I couldn't be of more help."

"It's fine. I was the one who probably should have asked more questions instead of just following a stranger." Zidane smiled at him and clapped his hands together. "So, where to?"

Bartz raised an eyebrow. "You're still going to follow me?"

"Why not? It's not like going back to the stage is going to do me any good now. So, where to?"

Bartz gazed back towards the main school building and pointed towards the roof top. "How about up there? I bet the view's amazing."

Zidane walked up to stand beside him and folded his arms. "Do you think we can get up there?"

"Only one way to find out. Come on!"

Bartz took off at a brisk pace and Zidane kept up with him easily. The two of them conversed as they made their way towards the school and he learned that Zidane was the same age as him. They were both thirteen, soon to be fourteen and would be placed in the eighth grade. He was surprised to learn that Zidane had also been placed into some of the advanced level high school courses, just as he was.

"I did so well on my weaponry skills test that they decided I would be bored in the regular classes. They figured it would be beneficial for me to be trained with the high school students."

"Me too." Bartz said with a smile. "I'll bet we'll be in the same class."

"I hope so." Zidane replied as they entered the school building together. It was incredibly crowded inside, with students and teachers milling about everywhere. The pair of boys pushed their way through the crowd and entered one of the school's stairwells. Once they got past the people on the first couple of floors, they were able to take the steps two at a time.

Bartz challenged Zidane to a race and soon they were laughing as they dashed up the flights of stairs, always trying to push past each other as they climbed higher and higher. The challenge ended when Zidane flipped over Bartz at the last moment and slammed into the door to the roof with both hands. He turned to Bartz, breathing hard and grinning like a fool.

"Rematch." The brown-haired boy breathed out as he wiped some sweat from his brow.

"Any time." Zidane assured him confidently.

"Well, we're finally here. Let's go."

Bartz gripped the handle and tried to open the door, only to find it was locked. He released the handle with a sigh, wiping more sweat off his face with his hand.

"Great, it's locked. We came all the way up here for nothing."

"Maybe not." Zidane's voice was mischievous as he got in front of him and worked the lock. After a brief moment, it opened and Zidane gestured for him to go inside.

"Nice move." Bartz nodded his approval. "Where did you pick up a skill like that?"

"Let's just say I picked up a few tricks when I had some down time in my old neighborhood." Zidane replied, trying to look innocent as they both walked through the now unlocked door.

The two boys walked right up to the roof's railing and looked down. The campus below was a mixture of modern walkways intertwined with tall trees, flowers and plenty of green grass. It would have been pretty to look at, had it not been swarming with people. There was a mass of people milling around in large groups, going this way and that as per the instruction of their guides. From above, it seemed like one step short of chaos, as large lines of people had to stop and go to accommodate for even larger groups of people to pass them by.

Bartz whistled. "I'm glad we're not down there. I'd love to wander among the trees on campus when they're aren't so many people. This spot is ideal for people watching though."

"Agreed." Zidane said, as he took a bag off his back and slung it in front of him. "And I have just the thing to make it better."

Bartz watched as the shorter boy pulled out a bunch of fresh food from his bag. Sandwiches, fruits, small cuts of meat and even a few pastries. The brown-haired boy eyed the other curiously.

"Did you make all this yourself?"

"No, the school did. It's the stuff they're giving to us for lunch today."

Bartz eyed the position of the sun and turned back Zidane. "It's not even close to lunch time yet. I'm surprised they gave all this to you."

"Maybe they didn't 'give' it any more then that door was unlocked." Zidane explained with a grin.

Bartz frowned at this, not really liking the idea that the other boy had stolen the food. Zidane saw his expression and his own became more serious.

"Look, I didn't eat much for breakfast this morning and I was feeling pretty hungry. I didn't think I'd last till lunch. Besides, they were going to give this stuff to us anyways. You can't really steal something that's yours to begin with, can you?" Zidane held an apple out to him.

Bartz shook his head at the logic, but took the apple anyway. "I suppose that's true." He added as he took a big bite. He had to wipe his chin as juice dribbled down his face.

Zidane took an apple of his own and bit into it. "How long do you want to stay up here?"

"As long as we feel like it." The brown-haired boy replied vaguely. "After all, since we're eighth graders, we're going to be some of the last people to get registered and fitted for uniforms. We may as well enjoy ourselves while we wait."

"Couldn't have put it better myself." Zidane said as he leaned on the railing, eating an apple and watching the people below.

Bartz smiled back and the two of them conversed for a long time, watching the people below.

* * *

Author's Note: Well, that's it for the first part of this chapter. I was originally just going to do one chapter, but it was just getting too long so I decided to split it in half. The good news is that the next chapter should be up shortly as I have most of it written already. Thanks for reading and I hope you're looking forward to part two!


	3. Orientation Part Two

**Orientation Part Two**

* * *

Cecil Harvey waited as patiently in the long line for registration. It seemed like his group had been waiting in this line for hours.

_It can't be helped. _Cecil thought reasonably. _They're doing the best they can with the number of people that are here today._

To assuage his boredom, Cecil started scanning the line of people in front and behind him. He spotted a friendly, laid back boy with blond hair wearing beach attire and talking amiably to everyone around him. Cecil admired him for the easiness in which he conversed with others, a trait that he himself sorely lacked. The silver haired young man wished that he was near enough to engage in a conversation with the talkative boy, but he was too far away.

Turning back towards the front of the line, he didn't see anything particularly interesting. His eyes wandered until they halted on a tall, muscular figure all in black. The full black clothing, though unusual, wasn't what had sparked his interest. The man standing a few feet away from the registration tables had silver hair and blue eyes that were so much like his own.

Cecil continued to stare until he realized someone was calling to him over. He had reached the front of the line at last and was being summoned for registration. He walked quickly towards the table to make up for the time he'd wasted, hoping he hadn't angered anyone behind him with his dawdling. The woman at the table, a red mage by the look of her outfit, greeted him warmly and asked him what letter his last name began with. He told her his last name was Harvey and she slide one of the clip boards to him, asking him to find his name.

He flipped through the pages until he saw the name Harvey. Cecil signed his name and was about to hand the clip board back when he spotted something that made him stop. Directly below his name was another who held the exact same last name as he did.

_Theodor Harvey, _Cecil read the name and for some reason it seemed to resonate through him. _It has to be a coincidence..._

"Is that your brother?" The red mage asked him, breaking off his chain of thought. She tapped her finger by the other boy's signature.

Cecil quickly gave the clip board back, embarrassed to realize he was wasting time again. "No, I have no brother."

"He said the same thing when I asked him, although he was much more vehement about it than you are. You two look so much alike that I thought you had to be related."

"Who?" Cecil questioned, though he already had a pretty good idea.

The red mage turned in her chair. "Him, over there."

Sure enough, she pointed right at the tall, muscular boy he had been staring at earlier. The one with the silver hair and blue eyes that looked so much like his own. Abruptly, as if feeling someone's gaze upon him, the other young man turned and their eyes met for a moment. The young man in all black examined him for a moment before his blue eyes filled with fire. Cecil realized that the eyes were filled with animosity and all of it was directed at him.

After a long moment, the red mage called his attention back to the forms on the table. Unwillingly, Cecil tore his gaze away and bent down to fill out the necessary forms. He scribbled as fast as he could, not really caring if he made a mistake. When he was finished, he rushed around the table and towards the crowd where he'd seen the other boy. Cecil stopped when he realized he was too late. The tall young man in black had vanished.

* * *

Squall Leonhart moved slowly, following the rest of his orientation group. He was in the very back of the group and that's where he stayed. In truth, he liked it that way. He wasn't interested in speaking with anyone unless he had to and his position in the back of the crowd allowed him that luxury.

Squall watched as the members of his orientation group, along with people from other groups who had come to join them in trying on uniforms, conversed and laughed. Many of them were already making friends, chattering happily with the people who they could be sharing their classes with. Squall wanted no part in any of it. His face must have conveyed those feelings, for the other people in his group had stayed away from him.

Instead, Squall occupied himself with examining the people walking all around him. For the most part, they looked like normal people no different from your average high school student, but he did see a few outliers now and again. In particular, there was a tall, blond-haired boy from a different group with feathers in his hair and the most ridiculous bunch of make-up he'd ever seen on someone's face. It made him look like a clown and a scary one at that, like the ones you saw in the horror movies. Squall didn't know what this boy thought he was trying to accomplish looking like that and he decided he didn't want to know.

He was so engrossed at staring at the strange clown boy that he hadn't realized their group had stopped walking and he bumped into the girl in front of him. He backed up and she turned around and gave him a glare. Her lips were covered with a light shade of purple lip stick and her long hair was a silvery purple shade. Both her shirt and pants were tight on her body, showing off her slender form. Squall was about to voice his apology when the 'girl' snapped at him.

"Watch where you're going." The sentence was given by a surprisingly, and unmistakeably, masculine voice.

Squall just stared at this other person for a long moment, rendered speechless by the discovery that this was, indeed, a boy. His words caught in his throat as he tried to place the voice he'd just heard with the person in front of him. Fighting off his confusion, Squall finally managed to find words and mutter a quick apology.

"Sorry."

The slender boy huffed at his apology and turned away. Their group started walking again and Squall stood still for a moment, with a hand over his face.

_How can any guy dress up in an outfit like that and not be embarrassed? _Squall thought as he shook his head.

Squall removed the hand from his face and ran a few steps to catch up with his group. He remained in the back as they headed to the uniform room. His peers didn't speak with him again. He was alone, but he was fine with that. It was just the way he liked it and, given some of the strange folk he'd seen today, he hoped it stayed that way.

* * *

Kuja sifted through the uniforms and pouted. They were such plain, drab looking things, nothing that he would wear unless he was forced to. Unfortunately, he was, as the school required him to wear a uniform. He pulled one of the shirts forward and examined it. It was a long shirt that came in either white or black, with a small collar at the top, a pocket on the right side of the chest complete with the school's insignia and gold buttons down the front. The pants were typical slacks that came in either black or white. The uniform staff had encouraged the students to pick either white or black uniforms, whichever they liked better.

_I guess that's something, although I wish they'd let me make a few alterations. _Kuja thought as he debated between the white and the black. _I'll go with the black one. I wouldn't look good in so much white. Besides, white stains easily and is a pain to take care of. _

Once Kuja was done picking out five uniforms in his size, planning to adjust the pants to hide his tail, he started examining the throngs of people around him, wondering if their was anyone worth conversing with.

_Hm, well, let's see, _Kuja thought as his blue eyes traveled the room._ There's the sour faced boy who bumped into me earlier. He seems like he has some serious attitude issues. And over there is that boy with the silver hair who took forever at the registration tables because he was too busy staring off into space._ _Those two over there look like they just came from the beach. Wow, those are some horrible outfits! What's with that boy's mismatched pants? How can he walk around wearing those and not be embarrassed?_

Kuja shook his head and focused on the larger boy beside the one with the awful pants. He had thick, dark brown hair with a red bandana tied around his forehead. Even from a distance, Kuja could see he was well muscled. Kuja wrinkled his nose as he saw this muscular boy wipe some sweat off his face with one of his large hands.

_I'm surprised I can't smell him from here. Those boorish, athletic types always smell deplorable, even when they're not playing their silly games. This one doesn't seem to have an ounce of grace in him._

Unimpressed, Kuja turned his eyes away and scanned the crowd one more time. As he had suspected, he saw no one he deemed worthy of talking with him. Kuja closed his eyes and sighed. _A main character with no one to converse with. A disappointing first act, a tragedy if there ever was one. The supporting cast is not worthy of the star. Oh, what to do..._

Kuja opened his blue eyes again and he halted in mid-step. There, inches from his face, was a boy wearing a jester's mask. Or at least, that's what he thought at first. The boy's face was covered in white make-up, his lips adorned with deep purple lipstick and red swirls accented his eyes. A feather hair tie kept his blond hair in a pony tail and his clothes were sickeningly colorful and as mismatched as a harlequin outfit. This boy's blue eyes took a moment to examine him from top to bottom, making Kuja feel uncomfortable, before the boy gave a wide, seemingly approving, smile.

"You and I are going to be good friends. I can tell."

Kuja found himself rendered speechless by the remark. The strangeness, along with the audacity of it, was just too much.

The other boy continued, completely oblivious to Kuja's feelings. "Everyone else here just doesn't fit my style. I'm glad to have found someone who feels the same way."

"What do you mean by that?" Kuja asked with a frown, finally finding his voice again.

"I mean, I saw the way you were looking around at the crowd. The way you gave that huffy sigh, closed your eyes and made that pout just screamed nobody-else-here-is-good-enough-for-me."

The slender boy's cheeks pinked slightly and he turned away. Trying to walk off, he didn't go one step before he found the strange boy standing right in front of him again.

"Now, now, don't be mad!" The clown boy said with his hands in spread in front of him. "It's was meant as compliment. It takes real talent to get that level of disdain down into a facial expression. Why, you could read it from a mile away!"

Kuja was about to give an irritated response to this when the other boy's slender fingers moved to his hair. Before he could protest, the clown's fingers closed around the silvery purple feather at the top of his forehead and gave it a small tug.

"THIS, on the other hand, you needed a close up to see." Then, he gave a little harder tug and whistled. "Well, what's this? It's attached! And here I thought it was just a decoration. It goes so well with your hair it's hard to notice." The clown boy grinned and chuckled to himself. "Simply wonderful! You get more interesting the more I see of you."

"Don't touch it!" Kuja hissed and pushed the boy's hand away. Now his cheeks were burning and he was infuriated. How dare this boy paw at him like this? "Do you always just go around and invade other people's privacy?"

"If it's fun, then yes."

"I don't find it very amusing."

"Well, I do, so there." Kefka smiled smugly as if this justified his behavior.

Kuja just stared at him for this, feeling at a lose for words. He placed a hand on his forehead, a slight pain beginning to grow there. Finally, he said the only question that came to his reeling mind. "Who ARE you?"

He had meant it to be a rhetorical question, but the boy with the excessive make-up took it as an opportunity to introduce himself. Grinning like a fool, he took one of Kuja's hands and proceeded to jerk his arm up and down like it was a jump rope.

"The name's Kefka!" The boy exclaimed as he shook their hands up and down with increased vigor. "What's yours?"

The slender boy tried to wrench his hand free from the swinging menace, but found it impossible to break the surprisingly tight grip. Kefka grinned at him with eager blue eyes. Sighing, he finally gave in and said, "Kuja."

"Kuja." Kefka repeated as he abruptly let go of his hand. Kuja rubbed it protectively as the boy gave him another massive grin. "I knew I liked you for a reason. Our names are even similar."

Now, Kuja looked at him with a dumbfounded expression. "How are they even remotely similar? They sound nothing alike."

"Not sound, silly. The spelling. Our names both start with 'K' and end with 'A.'"

Kefka seemed incredibly pleased with himself for making this connection. Kuja was truly beginning to wonder if he was simply dealing with an overgrown idiot child. He took a step backwards, wanting to get as far away from this eccentric weirdo as possible.

"Okay." He said with a smile and a nod. "Anyway, I've already got my new uniforms," he showed off the neatly folded bundle he carried under one arm, "so I have no more reason to stay here. I need to get my schedule, so I'll just be on my way."

"Great, I've already got my uniforms too!" The clown boy told him, pointing to a small bag on his back with some black cloth sticking from the top. It was clear the boy had just shoved his uniforms into the bag without caring if it got completely wrinkled or not. Kuja grimaced at the eager expression on Kefka's face, realizing it might not be so easy to get rid of him.

"I'd prefer to be alone." The slender boy said in a slow, deadpan voice, hoping this strange boy would get the message and leave him be.

"Sure." Kefka answered cheerfully. "Then, I'll come with you."

Kuja glared at the response. "Do you know what 'alone' is?"

"Of course I do! Alone means you are in your own space." Kefka placed both hands above Kuja's head and moved them down to form a circular space bubble. "And I am in my own space." He made the same bubble over himself. "So we're both entirely alone, BUT," the clown changed his pitch to a higher and louder one just for a moment before it went back to normal, "since we are both going to the same place ALONE, we can be alone together!"

The clown then tried to place an arm around his shoulders, which he hastily sidestepped. The pretty boy spun on his heels and walked away as fast as he could without running. To his frustration, Kefka kept up with him with ease, chattering ceaselessly about this, that and the other thing. Kuja placed his fingers on his temples and rubbed them.

He had a headache.

* * *

Tidus Zanarkand smiled as he placed the last of his new school books into his bag and pulled it shut. Since he had gotten his books, his schedule, his uniform and finished registration, he was officially free to go. His group coordinator was pretty lax, which suited Tidus perfectly, and they had gotten through all the boring procedures with ease. Slinging his bag over his back, Tidus decided he wasn't quite ready to leave yet and wanted to explore the school.

The athletic boy found the stairs and took them two at a time to get to a floor that had less people milling around on it. After about three flights of stairs, Tidus found an empty hallway and began walking down it. He whistled to himself as he darted back and forth in the hallway, looking into all the different rooms. After a good deal of searching, he found a lecture hall at the end of the room that seemed pretty large and decided he'd have a closer look.

Happy to find the door was unlocked, Tidus pushed it open, stepped into the room and looked around. The entrance had a white board on the wall with an old fashioned desk in front of it. There was a small set of steps leading down into the main room. The room itself was circular and very spacious, like a miniature auditorium.

Tidus walked down the stairs until he was about halfway down before he slung his bag down in front of him. Sitting down on the steps, he rummaged through his bag and found the one thing he had brought from home with him this morning. It was a white and blue striped ball, the kind used in blitz ball. Tidus, being an avid player of the game, rarely went anywhere without one.

Spinning it in his hands, Tidus thought back on the events of the day. He had talked to a lot of interesting people and he generally liked the atmosphere of this school. He had a feeling he'd be very happy here. However, there was one thing that was missing from this school that he couldn't live without: a blitz ball team. When Tidus had learned the school had no program for blitz ball, he had nearly fallen out of his chair. He knew he had to put a team together because he would never be part of a school that didn't have a blitz ball team.

Fortunately, Tidus had talked to school's athletic department and he had found them quite open to the idea of forming a blitz ball team. In fact, he had already gotten the okay from Principal Light, provided that he got enough players for the team. Tidus had been ecstatic about getting the approval and had thought of little else since. The blond haired boy could see it now. He'd be the team captain of the greatest school blitz ball team of all time. His team would be legendary and the students at Dissidia Academy would talk about his wonderful record for years after he had graduated. Being a celebrated athlete would bring him a lot of perks as well, lots of friends, admirers and of course, his pick of the pretty girls on campus. Yes, he would find the perfect girlfriend and...

His dreams were cut short when a strong stench assailed his nostrils. Tidus realized there was a weight on both his shoulders. Opening his eyes, he saw two big, hairy feet with red sandals were resting on him. Grimacing, he turned to see the one person he had been avoiding since he'd arrived at the Academy.

His muscular cousin Jecht Zanarkand was sitting behind him at the top of the stairs grinning one of the arrogant grins that Tidus hated so much. Even though they were only a year apart, Jecht was both bigger and taller than he was. His hair was a deep brown in contrast to Tidus's blond hair and his face was much more rugged with a shadow of facial hair around his chin and mouth. People often mistook Jecht for someone in his mid-twenties, so Tidus had taken to calling him 'old man.' Jecht had countered that by calling him 'crybaby.'

"Get off!" Tidus snarled as he pushed his cousin's feet off of him. "I'm not a foot stool."

"Really?" Jecht's said sarcastically. He pretended to move his feet away, only to place them both on top of Tidus's head instead. "You coulda fooled me, what with you sitting still as a statue on these steps with your eyes glazed over."

Starting to feel angry, Tidus pushed the feet off of his head and stood up. His fingers tightened around the blitz ball. "What are you doing here?" He finally forced himself to ask.

"Well, if you haven't noticed, I go to school here." He talked slowly, as if he were speaking to a particularly slow child. "Just like you. So, I have just as much right to be in this room as you do."

"You could have picked a different room. There are plenty of other empty rooms around here."

"True, but I liked this room. It seemed like it could provide me with some entertainment."

Tidus scowled at that, deciding he was just going to leave the room and be done with it when Jecht pointed to the blitz ball in his hands.

"Is that why you're sitting here daydreaming? You thinking of making a blitz ball team at this school?"

"Of course!" Tidus told him, spinning the ball on his fingers with a hint of pride. "It'll be the best blitz ball team in the school and the division."

Jecht snorted. "Only if you don't have any competition, it will."

Tidus stared at him, his stomach filling with dread at the comment. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that I'm going to form a blitz ball team too. With me as the captain, we'll easily wipe the floor with your amateur team."

"I'm not an amateur!" Tidus shot back, putting the ball under his arm.

"Heh, prove it!" His cousin said, giving him hand signal that told him to bring it.

Raging at the arrogance, Tidus threw the ball in the air and performed his finishing blitz ball move. He flipped in the air and kicked the ball hard, sending it spiraling furiously at Jecht. The blond-haired boy landed on his feet with a smug smile, confident that his cousin wouldn't be able to counter it. To his dismay, Jecht spun in place, connected with the ball and sent it straight back at him. The ball hit him in the stomach, hard, and he somersaulted backwards onto the floor, landing on his stomach. The wind knocked out of him, he crossed his arms over his throbbing stomach and took in a few painful gulps of air. Over him, he heard his cousin give a raucous laugh.

"That's what I thought. All talk and no substance, as usual." Jecht said with a smug expression and crossed his arms over his chest. "I'll have no trouble crushing all your hopes of glory. You couldn't beat a five year old kid with a move like that, let alone me."

"I hate you, old man!" Tidus shouted at him from the ground, clutching the blitz ball tightly in his hands.

"Crybaby." Jecht replied with a roll of his eyes. Then, he turned his back on Tidus and started walking away.

Burning with anger, Tidus jumped to his feet and threw the ball as hard as he could at Jecht's back. His cousin was too quick for him and made it to the door before the ball could connect with him. He exited the room and the ball ricocheted uselessly off the door frame. Cursing, Tidus went over and picked it up. Clutching it tightly in his hands, he glared back out the door as if Jecht were still there. Then, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath and exhaled. Tidus decided right then that he would not let Jecht ruin this for him. He was going to be happy at this school and there was nothing his cousin could do to change that.

* * *

Jecht Zanarkand whistled to himself gleefully as he walked down the stairs, a heavy bag full of books and uniforms slung over his shoulder. Annoying that dumb crybaby cousin of his was always good for a laugh, especially since he was incredibly easy to provoke. Jecht shook his head, wondering if his blond cousin would ever change. In truth, he had nothing against the kid, but his exaggerated reactions to things and his big ego over his small accomplishments tended to either rub Jecht the wrong way or make him laugh. Typically, it was the latter.

Jecht, having completed all the steps of his orientation, was free to go. As he traveled leisurely down the stairs towards the front entrance, Jecht thought over his experience at this school. Though he'd never been much of a school person, having skipped a lot of his classes in his previous high school, he felt like this place could be okay. At least there'd be some fighting classes here where he could practice with his sword, instead of just the typical boring slog of history and math. Maybe he'd even meet somebody who'd be a match for his strength.

_Though that's pretty doubtful._ He thought of the giant black sword in his room and grinned. _Maybe I'll meet someone who'll actually put up a fight. That'd be nice for a change..._

Pushing through the crowd, he exited the main school building walking straight into the cool evening air. It felt good against his skin, especially after spending so much time indoors. Jecht saw a small crowd of people walking slowly on the pathway out of the campus and began to follow them. He figured they were other students who had finished orientation like he had and were on their way home.

Catching up to them, his eyes wandered through the crowd in search of one thing: cute girls. In that area, the school hadn't disappointed him. From his fellow students to some of the faculty, Jecht had been pretty impressed with the fine selection of women on campus. He made the acquaintance of quite a few of these women during the course of the day and most of the responses he'd gotten had been quite positive.

Looking around, he saw a wisp of green and spotted the pretty green-haired girl in the distance that he'd found quite attractive earlier in the day. Unfortunately, she was a bit too far away for him to catch up to her. Shrugging, Jecht decided he could talk to her some other day and started scanning the crowd for a closer target. He grinned when he spotted one not too far away.

_Well, there's one I missed. _Jecht thought as he spied a slender girl with nice hips and long silvery purple hair. He put a hand through his thick brown hair and smoothed it out. _I'd better go make her acquaintance. _

Jecht took a few big steps until he caught up with her, then he gave her a little tap on the shoulder before saying, "Hello beautiful. I saw you from a distance and I knew I just had to introduce myself." He put an arm gently around her shoulders and asked, "What's your name, sweetheart?"

The slender form beneath Jecht's arm tensed. Jecht blinked as he got a good look at the face that turned to glare at him. Though it was a pretty face, complete with purple lipstick and pink eye shadow, the strong blitz ball player immediately sensed something was off.

"You're...not a girl, are you?" Jecht spoke slowly, feeling slightly confused.

In response, the girlish-boy shoved the arm off from around his shoulders. He brushed his manicured hands over the fabric of his tight shirt as if they had someone been soiled by his touch. Then, sneering at Jecht, he said, "No more than you're a genius."

Jecht raised an eyebrow at the haughty response, but the lavender haired boy merely stuck his nose in the air and turned around to walk away. He only got a few steps away before he stopped in his tracks. A loud, obnoxious voice was calling for someone named, "Kujie-coo," and the girly-boy in front of him immediately started turning his head side to side as if looking for a place to hide. Abruptly, he dashed off to left to hide behind a tall, muscular guy with silver hair.

The strong blitz ball player searched for the source of the voice and spotted a tall skinny boy wearing a lot of make-up, so much in fact that he looked like a scary clown. As he drew closer, Jecht grabbed his shoulder and said, "Hey you. You lookin' for a guy with kinda silvery purple hair wearing make-up?"

The clown smiled broadly and nodded eagerly. "Have you seen him?"

"Just ran into him in fact. He's over there by that big guy dressed in all black. The one with the silver hair."

The clown put a hand above his eyes to shield it from the sun and bounced in place when he spotted the person Jecht had described. Gleeful, he took one of Jecht's big hands in his slender pale ones and shook it up and down heartily. "Thanks so much!"

"Anytime."

With that, the strange boy skipped off towards where the girly-boy was hiding. Jecht watched smugly as the clown tiptoed towards the other boy before pouncing on him, wrapping both arms around his unsuspecting form. The girly-boy pushed the clown boy away in anger, clearly telling him not to do that again. The jester-like boy just laughed at that and said something to the other boy while pointing in Jecht's direction. The haughty pretty boy looked over at Jecht with a fierce glare, apparently realizing who it was who set the weirdo on him. Jecht put on his most satisfied smile and waved back cheekily.

_Not bad for one of us non-genius types, huh, pretty boy? _Jecht thought as he watched the haughty boy try to get away from the clown boy without any success.

Putting the strange pair from his mind, Jecht stopped for a moment to admire the campus. The place wasn't too shabby, if he did say so himself, and it looked especially nice in the fading light of the sun. The strong boy stretched a little bit, enjoying the last rays of the warm sun as the shone upon his face. When the sunlight moved away from his face, he was about to move on, but he got a funny feeling that made him stay where he was.

Jecht turned back towards the school, his gaze focused on the roof. He felt like someone was watching him. No, not just him. Everyone. He placed a hand above his eyes to shade them from the setting sun and he thought he saw two shadows on the roof. One was a light silhouette, the other was completely dark and they seemed to be talking about something. Blinking, the figures merged with the rays of the sun.

The strong blitz ball player shrugged, figuring he was just imagining things. He turned away thinking about his first day of school tomorrow, along with all the cute girls he would see. Grinning to himself, he walked swiftly back to his apartment, planning to practice some good blitz ball moves before going to bed that night.

* * *

Author's Note: Okay, that is the end of orientation. As I said in the last chapter, that turned out to be a lot longer than I had anticipated. The rest of the story will be divided into chapters that focus on certain characters, not the whole cast. This should make the rest of the chapters a bit more manageable. That's my theory anyway.

With that out of the way, thanks to everyone who has reviewed and favorited the story thus far! I always appreciate feedback and I'd be happy to hear what you have to say about the story. Thanks again and I hope you're enjoying the story.


	4. The Returners

**The Returners**

* * *

It was the first official day of school. While most of the students would be taking their time or dragging their feet to start the new year, there was one student who had gotten to the school extra early that morning. A tall boy carrying a large bag full of books, school supplies and tools was seated beside one of the school's flower gardens. This particular garden was Firion Fynn's favorite garden, as it was where all the roses were grown. Carefully, he pruned away the last of the dead leaves from a particularly beautiful red rose. Mopping a bit of sweat from his brow, he sat back to admire his work. The roses all seemed to shine in the sunlight, as if they were showing him their appreciation for his efforts. Smiling, he gently stroked the petals of one of the shining red roses.

"You're here early."

Firion turned at the voice to see a boy with spiky blond hair and blue eyes. He was wearing the same white uniform that Firion himself had chosen on his first day of school. It seemed like ages ago, especially with the recent changes to the Academy. He gave the boy a small wave and said, "You know me. I'm always here early."

"True," Cloud Strife replied with a small smile, "but I guess I meant you got here even earlier than usual."

Firion returned the smile. "You would be right." He turned back to the roses and said, "It's getting colder and soon all the flowers will be gone again. I wanted to make sure I get as many chances to take care of them as I can before then. Plus, with all the new people coming in today, I thought it might be best if I did some maintenance today. I figure if they're looking their best, maybe these new students won't bother them so much. At least, I hope so."

Cloud nodded at the sentiment, knowing his friend's love of flowers. Still, his face turned serious and he stared intently at Firion as he said, "That's not the only reason you're here so early, is it?"

Firion gave a sigh and shook his head. "Of course not." He turned his brown eyes back to Cloud as he asked, "Are you worried?"

"A bit." Cloud admitted. "Are you?"

"How could I not be?" The gray haired boy replied as he looked up at the school's second story windows. There was a familiar figure leaning out of one of the open windows, one with long blond hair and cold blue eyes.

Cloud followed his friend's gaze and grimaced. "I understand your concern, but I don't think you need to worry yourself much today. I think it's too early for him to try anything."

"I suppose you're right." Firion admitted as he studied the figure in the window. "He is a lot of things, but he's never been impulsive." The gray haired boy sighed deeply. "Still, you never know with him."

"I know how you feel." The blond haired boy remarked as he searched the school with his blue eyes. He thought he saw a shadow standing on the railing of the roof, one with long hair, but it disappeared as quickly "They're calling us the Returners, you know."

"Because we're the veterans at this school, right?"

"Right." Cloud confirmed, adjusting his bag on his shoulders. "I think the new students should be okay for a time. They wouldn't be here if they couldn't fight in some way."

"True. I think they will be happy here for a while." Firion trailed off as he saw one of the new students walking slowly towards the school. She had green hair pulled into a pony tail and was wearing one of the school's black uniforms. The girl stopped in front of the school and her blue eyes showed her uncertainty. Firion got to his feet and was about to ask if the girl needed any help when a cheerful voice calling her name made her turn around.

Firion and Cloud watched as Luneth Ur walked up to the girl and asked her if she needed any help. The young Onion Knight was soon joined by his constant companions, Arc Ur, Refia Kazus and Ingus Sasune. They all greeted the girl warmly and exchanged names before Arc asked if the girl named Terra needed any help getting around the school. Though the four younger students would have been on the lower levels of the school building, Refia offered to walk with her to her first class and the others quickly agreed. As they were heading into the school, Luneth noticed Firion and Cloud standing nearby. He smiled and waved at them before catching up to his friends.

Firion turned back to Cloud and said, "We should follow Luneth's example. We've got to help these newcomers and not just with adjusting to their new school life."

"Right." The blond haired boy handed Firion his large bag. "Thing should be fine as long as we're watching out for them."

Firion gathered up all his things, somehow managing to juggle all of it between his arms and back and said, "Then, we'd better get started, don't you think?"

Cloud nodded and the pair went into school together, heading for the second floor. The pair walked quietly down the hallway and when they spotted the person they were looking for, they ducked behind some nearby lockers to listen. Firion was both relieved and worried when he found the person he was looking for. Relieved because it seemed like the tall, imposing young man with long blond hair in a black uniform hadn't caused any trouble yet. At the same time, he was worried when he saw who was standing with him. His girlfriend, a slender young woman with long silver hair and gold eyes in the black uniform for female students, was staring out the window on the second floor, as if examining something.

The pair in question were Mateus Palamecia and Ultimecia Edea, two of the most powerful students in the Dissidia Academy. Not only did the two of them have a reputation for being powerful, they also had a reputation for being a pair that no one messed with without regretting it. As Mateus began to speak, Firion and Cloud started listening intently.

"I can't believe we're going to have to share space with such wretched insects." Mateus's voice held no anger, only a cold disdain as he stared out the window. "These worthless dregs will be the worst thing that ever happens to this school."

"I wouldn't take it so hard." Ultimecia consoled him as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. "The school just needs some more funds and for that they need fresh blood."

Mateus scoffed. "If all the school needed was money, they could have just asked my father. He could have bought the school and easily funded it without having to bring the riff-raff here. There's a fine line between fresh blood and watered down mud."

"Just be patient." The gold eyed witch gave his shoulders a consoling squeeze. "There will be plenty of time to judge these fresh bodies and make a proper assessment of them. None of them will be on our level, but who knows? Maybe we'll find one or two among the rabble who will entertain us."

Ultimecia gave a small cruel smile, which Mateus reciprocated. Firion and Cloud exchanged a worried look, neither one liking the sound of that. Mateus was about to reply, when a deep, gravely voice asked, "What kind of entertainment are ya lookin' for?"

Cloud and Firion's eyes locked on the new student in a black uniform, one with brown hair to his shoulders, wearing a red bandana. He was muscular and had a few scars on him. He didn't look like a pushover. Still, Firion felt his heart go for his throat as Mateus and Ultimecia turned towards the newcomer.

Mateus's eyes scrutinized the newcomer before he said, "The kind that knows how to obey its betters and follow orders without question. The kind that understands that a taste of hell awaits all those who are disobedient."

"Huh." The big student rubbed the back of his head in confusion. "You sure have a strange idea of entertainment."

"Your opinion on my choices of entertainment mean little to me. You are nothing more than a common bug." Mateus placed a hand over his chest and his face went cold. A presence of regalia seemed to come upon him as he spoke again. "After all, I am the Emperor of Palamecia."

"The Emperor of Whozawhatits?" The muscular boy snorted as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Aren't you a little old to be playin' make believe?"

Mateus said nothing to this, though their was a chill in his blue eyes. Ultimecia smiled cryptically as she stood by his side. "You have a bold tongue. What is your name?"

"The name's Jecht." He seemed like he was about to ask for their names, but the silver haired woman spoke again before he could.

"Well, Jecht, let me give you a piece of advice. You should not speak so freely about things you know nothing about. It might get you in trouble."

"That a threat?" Jecht cocked an eyebrow.

"Quite quick on the uptake, aren't you?" Mateus's voice held a light sarcasm in it.

"Heh, I might not be the brightest student in this school," Jecht threw his hair over his shoulders and took a fighting stance. He raised his arms and balled his fists. "But, let me tell you, good grades don't make a difference in a fight and neither does make believe."

Mateus seemed amused on the surface, though anyone who had dealt with him enough knew there was a cold anger right beneath it. Before anything worse could happen, Firion and Cloud jumped out of hiding to intervene. Firion cleared his throat loudly, causing all three students to look at him. Mateus's expression grew cold, Ultimecia's impassive, while Jecht just looked confused.

"Well, if it isn't little Firion, come crawling back to the Academy just to get in my way." Mateus purple eyes were cool, but his lips curled into a little knowing smile. "Still attending to your little flower gardens?"

"If you must know, I was working with the rose gardens this morning." Firion explained to them, meeting their eyes and not backing down.

Ultimecia shook her head at that. "Still putting faith in such fleeting things. When will you ever learn?"

Firion frowned and his voice turned firm. "I did not come here to discuss the flower gardens with you. I came here to remind all three of you," he looked at three students before him for an equal measure of time before continuing, "that fighting is not allowed unless it is done in a classroom environment monitored by our staff. To persist in doing so would land you all in detention."

"Yet spying on other students is deemed an acceptable activity." Ultimecia countered with a faux sweet smile. "Or so I assume."

Firion looked uncomfortable at that, but before he could say anything Mateus cut in. "None of us required your worthless reminder. We are all well aware of the rules. Besides, do you really think I'd sully my hands with the likes of him?"

Jecht opened his mouth to say something, but Firion quickly talked over him to avoid making the situation worse. "It appeared that way to me. I didn't mean to offend anyone with my assumptions."

Mateus merely shrugged at this. "Offense can only be felt if one cares about what the other person thinks about them. I do not care at all what you think, Firion Fynn. Do not begin to assume otherwise."

With that, both Mateus and Ultimecia turned their backs on the trio and strode off. They never looked back as Firion, Cloud and Jecht watched them go. Firion breathed a sigh of relief as the pair disappeared into their classroom.

"Well, those two make quite an unpleasant pair, don't they?" The student in the red bandana commented with a shake of his head. "Especially that snobby Emperor of whatever land."

Firion felt worried at the nonchalant attitude this student was showing towards Mateus. "I would advise you not to provoke him." Firion's voice was adamant. "His father is one of the richest men in the world and it gives him free reign to act however he wants. He might try to hurt you if you do something he deems offensive."

Jecht scoffed at that. "Let him try. I'm not so easy to push around. That and I have quite a bit of money myself. My Dad was a famous blitz ball player and he left me quite a fortune. I'm by no means poor, if you catch my drift."

"Even so, you shouldn't go looking for trouble." Firion spoke up again, out of pure concern. "Especially from him."

"What are you, my mother?" Jecht crossed his arms over his chest. "I just told you, I can take care of myself. You don't have to worry about me."

"Firion is the student body president of the Academy." Cloud informed the muscular boy, feeling irritated at his attitude. "He's only trying to advise you on the best course of action as someone who's familiar with the students in this school."

"Well, thanks, but if I want his advice I'll ask him for it." Jecht waved a hand in dismissal as Cloud tried to speak again. "Listen, I got better things to do than be mothered by a pair of kids who are probably younger than I am. You can go back to your spying or whatever it was you were doing. Later."

With that, the muscular blitzball player turned away and walked back down the hall. Firion and Cloud exchanged a look of worry, but didn't try to stop him.

"That could have gone better." Firion sighed as Jecht disappeared into his classroom.

"It also could have been worse." Cloud pointed out to ease his friend's worries.

"Yeah, but things can always get worse where Mateus is involved. It's like saying the sky is blue."

Cloud actually smiled at that. "We'll just have to keep an eye on the pair of them whenever we can. Try to keep their mischief to a bare minimum."

"You'll help me with it?" Firion asked tentatively.

"Of course I will. Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't want to trouble you with it. I know you have your own worries."

Cloud's eyes flashed and then moved towards the stairwell that led to the roof. He gazed at it for a long moment, feeling a familiar presence lingering on the roof. "I do, but your going to help me keep track of him too, right?"

"Yes, of course." Firion response was immediate and firm.

Cloud smiled again. "Then let's share our worries. It'll make it a little easier on the two of us."

Firion nodded and then asked, "Should we meet up with the others after school?"

"Yes, let's meet on the rooftop. Although, we may end up meeting him up there as well."

Firion looked in the same direction as Cloud and nodded. "I will arrange the meeting with the others. For now, we should be getting to our classes. It's almost time for them to start."

Firion turned and started walking back the way they came with Cloud walking beside him.

* * *

"Hmm?" Bartz stopped and looked around at his surroundings.

"What?" Zidane asked curiously.

"Well, I don't think this is our floor."

This caused the shorter boy with the monkey's tail to look exasperated. "Then, why did you walk up here?"

"I just felt like wandering around." Bartz shrugged at him causally.

"You just started wandering at a time like this?" Zidane was incredulous. "It's our first day of school! I could understand if we had some more free time, but at this rate we're going to be late!"

"What's the big deal, even if we are?" Bartz shrugged again. "We've probably got a grace period, given that it's the first day and we're new here. I don't think anything bad will happen if we're late."

"Yeah, well, the staff might think differently. I don't want to end up in detention on my first day of school." Zidane rubbed the back of his head. "Man, Kuja would never let me hear the end of that and I don't even want to think about what my parents would say."

"Kuja?" Bartz had never heard that name before.

"My older brother." Zidane explained. "He goes here too."

"Does he have a tail like you?"

"He does, but he doesn't show it like I do. He doesn't like it." Zidane explained before Bartz could ask. "He also doesn't look much like me, so people don't know we're related unless we tell them."

Bartz made an interested noise, then turned back to their situation. "Well, I suppose we better ask somebody where our classroom is."

"Yeah," Zidane agreed and looked around for some people who didn't look busy. He spotted a quartet of kids, who seemed to be around their age. There were three boys, one with silver hair and violet eyes, another short boy with brown hair and brown eyes and a third with blond hair and blue eyes. The fourth member of their little group was a girl with red hair and brown eyes. They were waving to a pretty green-haired girl who was disappearing into her first class. Zidane turned back to Bartz and said, "Hey, why not ask them? They look friendly enough."

"Sure, let's go."

Zidane and Bartz trotted over to the quartet, who looked at them expectantly.

"Hello there." The shortest boy said politely. "Can we help you with something?"

"Yeah, if you can." Bartz started and showed them his schedule. "Do you guys have any idea where our classroom is? We're a little lost."

"Here, let me see." The short brown haired boy took the schedule, looked it over and smiled. "Oh, you two are eighth graders. We're in the same level as you. My name is Arc. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Bartz."

"And I'm Zidane. It's nice to meet you too." Zidane replied before examining the rest of the group. His blue eyes rested on the red haired girl and he gave a big grin. "So, can you introduce us to the rest of your friends, starting with this lovely lady here?"

The girl looked a little dubious at the remark, but Arc was happy to oblige. "Oh, sorry, that was kind of rude of me. This is Refia, a good friend of ours." Refia gave a little curtsy at her introduction. He gestured to the silver haired boy standing next to him. "This is my friend Luneth and next to him is our good friend Ingus." The blond haired boy looked up and gave them a little nod of recognition.

"So, Arc, can you help us get to our classroom?" Bartz asked once the introductions were done.

"Sure thing. The room is on the same floor as ours. We can lead you to it." Arc assured him.

"Great, let's get going." Zidane urged, wanting to get to his class on time.

The group of six started moving back down the hallway where Bartz and Zidane originally came from. Zidane was making friendly conversation and Bartz was about to join in, when he felt a pair of unfriendly eyes upon him. The feeling was so intense that he stopped abruptly and turned around. It didn't take him long to find the source. An incredibly tall, burly man with thick, slicked back gray hair was staring at him from just outside a classroom. A few long bangs covered his forehead, leading to a pair of golden eyes. His skin seemed oddly pale and his body was covered by a completely black suit. Bartz couldn't help the ominous feeling he got from this figure. The others stopped when they realized Bartz wasn't with them any longer and saw the figure he was staring at.

"Who's that guy?" Zidane asked the four young kids standing beside him.

"Oh, that's Xavier Death." Arc put in helpfully. "He teaches a lot of normal classes here, like botany and geology. However, he's mostly known for his magic classes. He's incredibly gifted, especially in Earth magic. Not only that, but he's really good with a sword."

"Will we be taking classes with him?" Bartz questioned, hoping for a negative response.

"Oh, no." Ingus shook his head. "Professor Death works with the seniors and the occasional talented junior. You won't train with him for a long time, if ever. He only takes the most advanced students, you know."

"No kidding." Zidane whistled and looked at the towering man a few feet away from them. "Personally, I'd love to try and take that big guy on. He might be strong, but I wonder if he's a match for my speed."

"Don't let him hear you say that." Ingus warned him. "Exdeath is as powerful as he looks, you know."

"Exdeath?" Bartz repeated the name, feeling a kind of odd resonance at the title.

"It's the nickname everyone has for Professor Death." Luneth explained to them with a grin. "No one knows where the name came from, but the students here think it's a combination of his first and last name. Probably some lazy student called him that and it ended up sticking."

"Lazy like you, huh?" Ingus teased and Luneth stuck out his tongue.

Bartz turned back to Exdeath, still feeling uneasy. The man with the golden eyes stared at him coolly a moment longer, before he turned away and went into his classroom.

"I don't think he likes me very much." Bartz muttered, not sure what he had done to earn this man's ire.

"Don't worry. Exdeath isn't the friendliest of professors." Refia chipped in with a shrug. "Maybe he's just having a bad day."

"Yeah, maybe." Bartz shrugged back, deciding not to worry about. After all, what would worrying do anyway? It never accomplished anything except wasting time, at least that's how he saw it.

The quartet of kids was about to say more when Zidane gave an appreciative flirt whistle. The group turned to see a woman in a skin tight red dress shirt and short skirt combination. Her slender legs were covered only by a thin pair of cream nylons. Her silver wavy hair flowed down either side of her face, while her red eyes focused on the group of students in front of her. Her full, red lips remained impassive and her gold hoop earrings flickered in the sunlight.

Admiring her figure, Zidane said, "She sure is impressive, in more ways than one."

Bartz stared a little himself. "Is she a teacher?"

"Yes," Arc replied very softly. "That's Claudia Darkness. She teaches high level magic classes. She's also an expert on the Void."

"What's the Void?" The brown haired wanderer asked.

"It's the place where all existence came from. It's also the place where all existence will eventually return to." Arc explained quickly. "At least, that's the short version of it."

Claudia Darkness eyed the four young children with a cool stare, one very much like Exdeath's. Then, she turned into the stairwell and made her way upstairs.

"Another bad day?" Zidane asked as he watched the curvy woman walk away.

"Yeah. Something like that." Luneth said in a small voice, his three companions looking incredibly uncomfortable.

"We should get going if we don't want to be late." Ingus reminded them all, breaking up the somber mood. He started walking off and the others followed him. Bartz and Zidane exchanged a confused look, then shrugged and followed the four other kids.

* * *

Cloud waited at the top of the stairs to the roof for Firion to arrive. He hadn't been waiting long when he heard the sound of feet pounding up the stairs. Around the corner came Firion, breathing heavily, with his bag of books, weapons and tools slung over his back. He stopped on the step below Cloud, giving a friendly wave as he caught his breath.

"Hey," he said as he wiped some sweat from his forehead, "did I keep you waiting long?"

"Of course not. I only got here a few minutes ago. You didn't have to rush yourself so much." The spiky haired boy voiced his concern at seeing his friend out of breath after carrying all his heavy gear up the stairs.

"It's no problem. I'd have hated to keep you waiting. Besides, it's good training, right?"

Cloud shook his head at the last sentence. "If you say so."

"So, are we just waiting for the others?"

"Yeah, they're not here yet," Cloud's blue eyes darkened as he turned around, "but that doesn't mean we're alone."

Firion's own eyes narrowed in understanding. "Best take care of this before the others arrive."

Cloud nodded. "Let's go."

Cloud opened the door to the roof and walked purposefully on to the roof. Firion was right behind him guarding his back. The pair of them examined the roof, looking for any signs of the tall figure in question. They both jumped and turned around to face a tall gray haired boy in one of the school's black uniforms. The other student was standing right in front of the door, blocking their way out. His arms were crossed over his chest as he looked at the pair of them with a small smirk on his face.

"It's good to see you again, Cloud." The voice was calm and held little inflection. The green eyes met his own with an impassive expression on his face. His long gray hair was blowing in the breeze, long strands wrapping around his tall body.

"What do you want, Sephiroth?" The spiky haired boy asked, not wanting to play any games.

"I just wanted you to know you disappointed me. I didn't get a chance to spar with you today in our weapon's training class."

"I didn't want to fight you." Cloud informed him coolly. "I had no reason to."

"Then, should I give you a reason?" Sephiroth opened one of his palms to reveal a handful of crushed roses. They were the bright red roses from the garden that Firion had worked so diligently on that morning. He let some of the crushed petals blow away in the wind as both of the students in white uniforms looked at him angrily.

"Those roses are school property." Firion informed him in the most neutral voice he could muster. "You had no right to touch them."

"The roses are for the students, are they not?" Sephiroth made sure to throw the remaining petals into Firion's face. "I will do with them as I please."

"No, you won't." Cloud said firmly. He hid the anger he felt inside him at the gesture. He didn't want the gray haired student to know that his actions had gotten to him.

"If you want to stop me, then fight me tomorrow." Sephiroth turned his body sideways to head down the stairs. "Otherwise, I'll just do it again."

Sephiroth turned around without another word and headed back down the stairs. Cloud started after him, but Firion grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back.

"Don't go after him." Firion advised sternly. "That's just what he wants."

Cloud stared down the stairwell, watching Sephiroth disappear. Once he was gone, the spiky haired boy turned around to face Firion and said, "I'm sorry about the flowers."

"As am I." Firion sighed. "They will regrow though, so no lasting harm was done. Don't feel guilty about it, okay?"

Cloud was silent for a moment, then he closed his eyes and said, "I guess I'll have to fight him tomorrow."

"You don't have to." His friend's brown eyes were filled with concern.

A long silence was Firion's only answer and before more could be said upon the matter, the pair heard the sound of several pairs of pounding feet coming up the stairs. A few seconds later, Luneth, Arc, Refia and Ingus all appeared before them looking a little flushed from their run up the stairs.

"Are you guys okay?" Luneth asked as soon as he saw them. "We passed Sephiroth on the way up the stairs and we thought he might have been waiting up here to fight with you."

"He was waiting for us, but he didn't fight us." Cloud answered quickly. "You shouldn't worry so much about us."

"You two always say that, but seeing as your rivals are two of the strongest people in this school, it's hard for us not to worry about you." Refia's hands were on her hips and her reply had a motherly ring to it.

"We're glad you're okay." Arc added meekly and Ingus nodded along with the sentiment.

"Well, we're sorry we worried you." Firion's smile was warm as he gestured them to all gather by the railing in front of him. Once the six of them had settled by the railing and were looking down on the school below, Firion placed his gear behind him and asked, "Did you four have a good day today?"

"Pretty good, actually." Arc responded promptly. "The new students we've met so far seem like nice people. Talented too."

"Yes, talented," Cloud's eyes grew dark as he stared off into the distance, "and so many of them."

The smiles faded from everyone else's faces as they understood what Cloud was getting at.

"Do you think they've found everyone they need?" Firion questioned as he looked at Cloud's somber face.

"It's hard to say." The spiky blond-haired boy leaned against the railing. "It will be a while before all the new students have been properly assessed. After that, they'll know if everyone they need is here or not."

"That won't be for a while though, right?" Refia sounded worried. "There will still be the midterms and other tests that they'll have to go through. Not to mention the..."

"Trials?" Ingus picked up where she left off. The serious young man faced the others and said, "Yes, it will be a while before all will be ready, if they have found all the right people. We still have a lot of time left, I think."

"But, it is getting worse, isn't it?" Arc added with concern. "Do you think that will cause them to rush things a bit?"

"There's no way to know for sure." Firion replied carefully. "I'm afraid all we can do for now is wait and see what happens."

"That and do our best to help the new students. We should try to look after them as much as we can, just as we've done today." Cloud said firmly as he watched the students of Dissidia Academy walking back to their homes.

The other five nodded in agreement and they all turned to face the sky again. Staring at it in silence for a while, finally Luneth said, "Well, we don't need to worry so much for now. The new students will enjoy themselves here for a time. We should try to do the same with the time we have, right?"

"Right." Firion said to him with a smile on his face.

* * *

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay in updates. I participated in Nanowrimo in November and once I finish that I typically have a writing burn out period. This one just happened to last a lot longer than usual. I hope I can update this story a bit more frequently in the future, if I'm not too busy.


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